Normally, bar soap is placed in an existing soap dish or tray after it is used. Typically, a nearby rack is used to hold the wash cloth. Although this arrangement is simple and inexpensive, it has many disadvantages. Water in the bottom of the soap dish accumulates and the bar of soap eventually is softened by its contact with the water in the dish. The next time the soap is used, the soft outer portion of the bar of soap quickly washes away, resulting in considerable product loss. Not only is such softening wasteful of soap, but it renders a bar less attractive in appearance and gives it an unpleasant texture and feel.
Another problem with bar soap results from its slippery surface when wet which makes the bar hard to hold onto. As a result wet soap is often dropped, which is annoying, especially when this occurs in a shower stall. Sometimes the bar, when dropped, will split into two or more pieces, which obviously results in more soap wastage.
Recent attempts have been made to provide soap bags for use both as washcloths and as portable soap receptacles. However, none of the presently available soap bags has provided an inexpensive and easily used combination washcloth and soap receptacle, primarily because of the difficulty achieving simplicity of construction, and also because of the use of inadequate mesh fabric.